Cane-harvester



N K. LYMAN. CANE HARVESTER. APPLICATION FILED JULY, 1919.

Patented July 5, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

N. K. LYMA N.

CANE HARVESTER.

APPLICATION FILED JULYMI l9l9.

Patented July 5, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

N. K. LYMAN'.

CANE HARVESTER.

APPLICATION FILED JULYH, 1919.

Patented July 5,1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

awuwliou Y assessed p p I -A pplication filed July'14,'1919.

" San- -inventednew and'useful Improvements in f UNITE D} r 5" To allwhom it'mayconcerm, v

in "Be i known thatQNORMAN K. LYMAN, a citizen'of the United States of America, residin at San Francisco, in' the county of %rancisco and State of California, has

Cane-Harvesters, of which the following is a specification. J p

The-object of'the-invention is to provlde a harvesting machine .for sugar; cane in -which the cane stalks will be drawn over 1 "and the tops removed andsubsequent to this the stalks severed close totheground, the

' motordriven or horse;.drawn as, desired.

Both the topping device andithe stalksevering device are capable of 'adjustmentqwith relation to the ground-u 1 To illustrate and describe the invention a specific embodiment is adhered to but, to this embodiment itis not to be restricted. 7 The rightisreserved to. make such changes or alterations as theactu'al reduction to practice-may suggest, in so far assuch-ohanges or alterations are'compatible in spirit with the annexedclaims. f The same numerals of reference designate the same. parts throughout the'several figuresof the drawings, wherein: -,.1

Figure '1 is a top plan view of the inven- -;ti'on'. i r i. Fig; 2 isa section :on the line 2 2-501 l'." i 1. I 1 1 'h ig." 3 isvadetail sectional view' on the iline 33'of.Fig'. 2.".

'45 .-:Fig.-4 is-a' section"- oni'th'e line of I :Tocarry-the invention into effect, there is provided a tractor orhorse drawn vehiclerl, whichever is found :to be the-most expedient to employ. This vehicular apparatus i com- 9 l prises a :top platform on which-the seats 2 and-:3 are mounted,'the seats 2 being convenient toasteering wheel 4 by means of which ;the':vehicle-or the machine 1 may be guided. Adjacent the 'forward endiof the machine 31:: 1' 1,-;but-projecting laterally from? one; side NORMAN l I .-Y MAI\ I,DE sn trnnnorsco, ciinrronmaff" cann-imnvnsrna. i

'Speeification s a es en;

thereof there are arms which are;inclinedv a forwardly and provided with -an;arcuate portion 6 ad acentf' their gfreeterminals.

These armsware designed to engage'thesugar stalks and tobring them toward. the sideof the machineas the latter advances, the'stalks. 5-; r passing under these arms afterthe imaa chine has passed far enough but, ofi cour'se'f bending down top'erm'it such passing-under I the arms.

vwhich is appropriately journaled on the :bot- V I tom wall ofthe housing 9, interior to which thestub shaft, has attached to it-a beveled geanlO. Y The housing 9 has formed there-' 7'5 with a tubular member 11 inwhicha shaft -12 is journaled. :This shaft .12 at .oneyende i carries a beveled gear 13 which meshes with the beveled gearlor;

\fromgthe housing 9 has ahinged connection .with a tubular membervl l projecting :later- It? ally from the side of the machine: or vehicle 7 11 and'the shaft 12 at this hinged connection v is universally connected toia shaft:15j .whi'ch is] operatively connected 'to" the tractor wheels-of the machined for "the purpose-of imparting rotation to the 'shafti15..fiThis operative connection is not shown" because it is not essential to a complete understand. 0o in'gof the inventionsrf L The topping blades 7 are designed .to be raised or .lowered, hence the. hinged con nection between the: tubular members-l1 and 14, as indicated at lfikandpreviously' ref with the housing-.9, obviouslywbeing' .pivot- .-ally: connected. with the two to permit the housing. and withit the blades"? to downward'or upward as thelever is-swung back and forth on'its pivotal connectionL-m Tosecure thesupportingmeans ofthetop- 1 1 0 ping blades against:lateral strain,the diag- .onal-ly disposed braces 21 arenprovid'ed and Mounted'directly behind the. arms5 there The; .tubularmembei" 1 1 the end remote S0 1 'pivotally 10o swing f r? I '40 the platform of the vehicle adjacent the seat -2. Positioned for cooperative-action'with these are connected between the housing 9 and the vehicle platform, as shown in Fig. 1, obviously having pivotal connections with the housing and with the platform so as not to interfere wi the topping blades in a verticalplane. To

therea'r oftlie 'topping blades 7fthereis stalk severing knife in the'form ofa cutting disk 22. This disk is carried by a stub shaft which is rotatably mounted in a housing 23. Interior to the housing the stubshaftcarrieS a beveled gear 24 which'ineshes with a bevat one end of a shaft 26 "whichis 'rotatably mounted in a tubular member or -sleeve 27 which isintegralIy con- 'nected to the housing 23 "at'its cuterend. The sleeve or tubular member 27 at its in'ner end is formed with afork"28,"thearms'of which adjacent their terminals carry the trunnio'n's 29 which are pivotally "mounted a in bearing blocks '30 attachedon the edge 'of the platform of the"ve'hicle. A universal joint 31 effects connection between the shaft "26 'and-a' shaft 32"which is carried by the ve- -hie1ei under.the 'platform and connects with 'eitherthe' driving meansfor-the vehicle or its tractor wheel *for the purpose of com- -municating motion to theshaft 3 2 and thereby rot-atiu-g the cutting knife 22' through the medium of the connections betw'eenthe shaft 32"and the cutting knife.

The cutting disk or knife 22' is designed to be "elevated and to this end there is mounted Jontop of the platform of the vehicle '1 *a standard 8301i top ofwhieh there is mounted'a sheave pulley' 34, the latter having trained thereovera cable or flexible member 35;one end of which connects with the housing-28 and the other end with a. hand operated lever 36Ipivota'lly mounted on top of this lever 36' there is'a' toothedsegment '37 with whose teeth there engages a spring latc'h 38' carried by the lever obviously for holding the lever in its various adjusted positions. By this construction the operator handling'the machine at thesteering wheel 4 may 'eleva'te or lower the cutting disk "22 as desired by "shifting the lever to position the'cutting' disk close to the ground or to elevate it a considerable distance therefrom. v 7

To insure the mechanism supporting the "cutting'disk from undue lateral strain, brace rods 39 are provided and connect one endto the sleeve 27.and the other end to the 'edgeof the platform of the vehicle 1, those ends connecting with the vehicle being spaced from the inner or upper end of the tubular member 27 on opposite sides of the latter and being-'pivotally connected to thefplatform'so as to'provide for the elevating and lowering of thecutting disk without interference orbinding by the brace'members' th the adjustment of A guard 40 connected with the housing 24 shields the cutting disk for half of its periphery and is positioned'at the rear of the latter. V

The mechanism just described is that for toppingand severing the stalks. In order with the vehicle 1, to be drawn by the latter. This vehicular apparatus 41*is--preferably-an ordinary wagon and 'on' th'e same side of'the apparatus'on which the topping-'bla'desi disk 22-are carried, a suitable "truck is provided, this. truck consisting -'of' a and cutting platform '42 havin ga side rail i or? plate 43 "and si'ipportin g wheels44 arranged tan- The truckplatferm is dem on one side.

thatthe. severed stalks may begatliered, a suitable vehicular apparatus 41 is connected connected with-the wagon body il' by means of upwardly inclined arms 45 which'are This construction? provides for sides thereof, those sprockets mountcarried on a commonshaft'with'the sprockets 49-ever which conveyer' chainsfb'O' are trained, these lattercliains being trained also over sprockets? 51 which are r0 tatably mounted in brackets 52 m'ou'nted' upon and'carried by-tlie upper edge 'of one side of the wagonbody. *Eachbrac'ket 52 is 'operati-vely connected with a be'veled shaft appropriately ournal'ed in' the several'brackets 52. The forward sprocket iil is driven 'bvashaft 56 consisting-oftwo telescopic'sectionsfthisshaft-56 at one end being connected to the small" sliaft'carryi n g the sprocket 51 by means 'ofa" universal! joint as indicated -at '57. The remaining end of-tlie shaft carries a 'gear '58-meshiIi-g"with"abeveled gear 59 carried on a shaft designed for operative connection with the driving "means for the shafts 32 "and 15. I?

It is obvious that many different conventional forms of driving mechanism could be employed for moving the shafts lb and w and-that on which'thebe'vel'ed gear59yiscarried and such means are not essential to 'an therefore been omitted here.

"understanding of the *invention and ihave gear 53 and all of t hesebeveledi-gears53 mesh with beveled gears '54 carriedflon a At'the forward end ofthetruck; theplatform r 42 is provided with a plurality of spaced 1 teeth =60" and the side rail or plate43 at the forward 'end isform'e'd with an; outwardlyturned or flaringrproj'ection fil;

In the operation ofthe" invention, 'the= vehicle 1 is advanced over the iground',' either under-its own power or by=means- Ofidlaift animals. The arms 5 are thereupon brought into contact with the sugar stalks and because of the forward inclination of the arms these stalk are swept toward the side of the vehicle being bent down until after the vehicle has passed to a point which will permit the stalks to pass under the arms. The cutting blades 7 the while will be moving and as these stalks, after having been bent down and having passed under the arms 5, begin to rise they will be encountered by the cutting blades 7 and the tops severed therefrom. The cutting blades 7, it will be observed, are comparatively close to the vehicle 1. Therefore the stalk tops will be thrown down toward the ground adjacent the vehicle 1 and will fall in a' row as the apparatus advances. The tops having been removed from the stalks they will begin to rise and reaching their normal positions with the tops removed will be encountered by the cutting disk 22 which will sever them close to the ground. They will then fall in a row adjacent to that in which the tops lie. The continued advance of the vehicle will bring the flaring end 61 of the side rail 43 and the teeth 60 of the platform 42 into contact with the stalks and they will be carried upon the platform falling on the conveyer chains 47 which will advance them to the conveyer chains 50 the latter carrying them up and depositing them in the vehicular apparatus 41.

The 1 invention having been described, what is claimed as new and useful is:

1., In a sugar cane harvester, a vehicle, a stalk topping mechanism carried by the vehicle on one side of the latter and adjacent said side, stalk severing means also carried by the vehicle but to the rear of the topping mechanism and at a greater distance from the side of the vehicle than the topping mechanism, and means carried by the vehicle for bending stalks over toward the latter to have their tops removed by the topping mechanism after which they may be cut by the severing means.

2. In a sugar cane harvester, a vehicle, a

stalk topping mechanism carried by the vehicle on one side of the latter and adjacent said side, stalk severing means also carried by the vehicle but to the rear of the topping ter to have their tops removed by the topping mechanism after which they may be cut by the severing means, and stalk catching means carried in the rear of the severing means.

3. In a sugar cane harvester, a vehicle, stalk topping means carried by the vehicle on one side thereof but close to the side of the vehicle, means for elevating and lowering the topping mechanism, a stalk severing device also carried by the vehicle but at a greater distance from the side thereof than the topping mechanism, means for elevating and lowering the severing means, and means carried by the vehicle adjacent the forward end thereof for bending the stalks over in the direction of the vehicle to have their tops removed by the topping .mechanism after which they may be cut by the severing means.

4. In a sugar cane harvester, a vehicle, stalk topping means carried by the vehicle on one side thereof but close to theside of the vehicle, means for elevating and lowering the topping mechanism,a stalksevering device also carried byfthe vehicle but at a greater distance from the side thereof than the'topping mechanism, means for elevating and lowering the severing means, and means carried by the vehicle adjacent the forward end thereof for bending the stalks over in the direction of the vehicle to have their tops removed by the topping mechanism after which they may be cut by the severing means, and stalk catching means carried directly in rear of the severing means.

In testimony whereof he aflixes his signature.

NORMAN K. LYMAN. 

